A Bird In The Hand
by regulargrrrrlxD
Summary: Once again, the park is left in the hands of Mordecai and Rigby, who might just be too busy sorting themselves out to save it.
1. Chapter 1

It was a cold, crisp day. The park was filled with the vibrant colors of fallen leaves, all mounding together on the ground to create a collage of Autumn foliage. Although, less could be said from the perspective of a certain blue jay and raccoon.

"Gah! We're never going to finish this!" The small mammal complains.

"Not if you keep whining. Just get back to raking, Rigby." his taller companion retorts.

"It's too cold to! I'm going to freeze to death, just trying to rake up some stupid leaves!"

"Dude, you're the one with fur. Don't even start complaining about it being cold." Mordecai says, slightly aggravated. "We're almost done. Let's just hurry up and finish before Benson gets mad."

"What does he have to get mad about? I don't see him out here doing anything." Rigby says, flailing his arms around in a fit of childish rage.

"I don't see you doing anything either." Mordecai chuckled.

"Whatever, dude! How much longer?" Rigby asks impatiently.

"Well, if you would actually help..." Mordecai says, gesturing in the direction of the few remaining leaves.

Rigby let out a groan, frown remaining plastered on his face. "Fine."

It had been a slow past couple of weeks; the visitors have seemed to be coming less and less. Of course, that just meant there was less work for Mordecai and Rigby to tend to. Benson had still been pushing them just as hard, still constantly threatening to fire the two, yet to no avail.

Though, while the number of assignments for the pair had lowered, the effort that was put into said assignments seemed to do the same, mostly on Rigby's behlalf.

"Finally! We're done!" Rigby exclaimed triumphantly.

"No thanks to you." Mordecai laughed.

"STOP TALKING." Rigby screamed, walking over to his friend.

"Here, give me your rake, I'll take it back to the supply shed while you go back inside, before you die from freezing to death in forty degree weather." The bird said, rolling his eyes.

"Thanks, bro," Rigby says reaching out and placing the rake in Mordecai's grasp. Feathers and fur brush one another, and the raccoon's face can help but heat up. Ah, that's right. Rigby had one of _those _dreams this morning.

"Uh…dude," Mordecai starts. "Are you okay?"

"No!" Rigby spat in surprise. "I must be getting sick from being out here so long; I told you it was cold out here!" the raccoon explained, clearly taken aback from his friend's comment.

Mordecai just looked at him blankly for a while, eventually just taking a deep breath and heading off to the supply shed.

"Then hurry up and get back to the house! I'll meet you inside." Mordecai calls to his friend.

"Jeez, what was that?" Rigby muttered to himself. Tension between the two of them was growing thick, at least on the raccoon's side at least.

Things were getting worse day by day, and the mammal wasn't sure how much longer he could suppress the emotions that bubbled beneath the surface. Rigby wasn't entirely sure how he felt anyways.

Rigby couldn't remember when it first started, but he found the feelings grow stronger seemingly everyday. But hey, Mordecai was a pretty awesome guy with some pretty awesome features. His smile, his laugh, his voice, an endless list of features began to arise in his head. Rigby loved being friends with Mordecai, but recently, it just didn't seem to be enough.

At night, when he lay alone on his trampoline, smothered in the dirty laundry that he calls a blanket, endless dreams of his friend's body against his own. Silken feathers pressed against soft fur, heat resonating from Mordecai; heating him, melting him. While he did have the occasional dreams that lead to a cleanup the morning after, all he mainly wanted was a more intimate relationship with the blue jay, love, not just lust. Not to say he wouldn't take that opportunity if it were to arise...

Though, Rigby's lack of competence wasn't the only thing preventing these plans from happening. Of course, Mordecai had to have already formed an attraction to someone else; a robin by the name of Margaret. Rigby couldn't really bring himself to hating the girl, but the fact that she was so oblivious only pushed Rigby further. She couldn't value how lucky she was.

"Hey, dude." Mordecai greets, walking through the kitchen door.

"Oh, uh… hey." Rigby responded, still slightly lost in his thoughts.

"So I was thinking of heading over to the coffee shop for a hot cup, since it's so cold out…"

"Aw, I don't wanna go to the coffee shop!" the raccoon frowned. Prime example of Mordecai's obvious affection.

Rigby knew that if he went to the coffee shop, it'd be nothing but the bird babbling over Margaret for an hour with Eileen breathing down the back of his neck.

"Well, I never said you had to come," Mordecai said with a slightly confused expression, "I just said I was going to go over myself. So you know- it's up to you to tag along."

"Yeah, but we're like a package deal, you know? So I just figured..." Rigby answered, embarrassed. "Are you even going for coffee, or are you going to see MAR-GA-RET?" Rigby teases, enunciating each syllable.

Now it was Mordecai's turn wear a blush. "Well, uh, I guess... I guess a little of both…"

"Aw come on, dude! Why are you so focused on trying to get Margaret to like you?" Rigby says, aggravated. "We could actually do something fun, like play video games. Does the coffee shop have video games?- I didn't think so!"

"Well, no. But it has Margaret."

"I fail to see the good in that." the raccoon yawned.

"Dude, Margaret's cool!"

"Pff." Rigby scoffed. "She has a new boyfriend almost everyday that we visit! She's a total whore."

"Dude! Not cool! She's not a whore, she just uh... dates a lot of people..." Mordecai trails off. Rigby just sat there with his eyebrow raised, a grin draped across his face. "What does it matter if I want to go see her?" he asks, crimson on the bird's face intensifying.

"I'm just trying to say there are better people out there is all..."

"Pf. Doubt it. I like Margaret more than anyone I know."

Rigby's heart dropped upon hearing that, eyes becoming glassy as pressure built up in his chest. Rigby could understand Mordecai's affection towards Margaret, but it was remarks like the one his friend had just made that ate away at him, especially when he was in a mood like this.

The raccoon was able to handle them every now and then, but he wasn't going to pretend that he hadn't been put through hell at times because of this same reoccurring female.

"DUDE, SHE DOESN'T LIKE YOU. She never will, when will you accept that?" Rigby laughed, "She's dated everyone, practically the entire town! Yet, she's never seemed to be the slightest bit interested in you."

"What the hell, dud-"

"So why don't you give up and move on? Your obsession with her is getting pathetic." Rigby finished, leaving them both quiet. The pit in Rigby's stomach was beginning to grow as regret became more prominent. Why the hell had he just done that?!

Mordecai remained silent, and headed off towards the door.

Rigby faltered. "D-dude, where are you going?"

"To the coffee shop," was the bird's response, opening the door and stepping outside.

"But I already sai-"

"When are you going to learn that my life doesn't revolve around you?" Mordecai cut in. Jeez, he was pissed now.

"I never even-" Rigby began.

"You never even what? Do you have any idea how much it pisses me off that you act like I'm your property? Who the hell cares if I go and talk to Margaret?!" Mordecai yelled. "It's my life and I don't know why you think you're in charge of it all of a sudden."

"How do you think I feel?!" Rigby screamed back, growing defensive. "You put this girl you hardly know above your best friend and you expect me to be okay with that?!"

"You're more of a tumor or a leech than a friend." Mordecai laughed, the raccoon looked at him in utter disbelief and letdown. "And why should I care how _you_ feel about all this when you can't even respect how _I_ feel?"

Rigby didn't answer, just sitting at the kitchen table quietly and waiting for it to be all over. He always messed things up between the two of them, and one of these days he's have to end it the only other way he knew how.

"That's what I thought." Mordecai muttered, slamming the door behind him and leaving Rigby to himself.

The raccoon bit at his lip, balling up his fists to try and hold himself together as tears began streaming down his face. Rigby was far past broken at this point. He was sick of this same damn barrier, sick of Margaret, sick of Mordecai.

Rigby's small framed started to tremble, the raccoon sniveling weakly as he broke down into full-on sobbing. But that was all he was, wasn't it? Weak. He couldn't last on his own without Mordecai. Rigby was exactly as the bird has said; a tumor. A parasite.

The mammal slammed his head down onto the table, muttering under his breath that was beginning to fog up the glossy surface of the wood. The only sound that could be heard throughout the house was the sound of Rigby's breakdown, as well as the 'ticks' and 'tocks' of the clock in the adjacent room.

"I can fix it.", Rigby whimpered with his muffled voice. "I can fix it."


	2. Chapter 2

The small chiming of a bell could be heard throughout the restaurant as the door to the coffee shop opened, revealing an upset blue jay. Mordecai walked over to an empty table, took a seat on one of the stools, went into a position of thought. Lacing his fingers together to intertwine both his hands, Mordecai rested his forehead against the support they provided.

_"What the hell is his problem?"_ the bird thought to himself while looking down at the table. He observed the surface, and the nicks and scratches that protruded into the wood, hoping to take his mind off of things.

"_He's such a child_, _hard to believe he's twenty-three_." Mordecai muttered quietly. "_Does he have problem with Margaret_?" the bird threw into consideration. "_I doubt he's jealous of me_. _Honestly_, _he's way better at talking to her than I am_."

Mordecai sat there, in deep concentration, pondering the possible reasons for the argument that had recently occurred, and why it had seemed so phenomenally drastic. Sure, Rigby took jabs at Margaret from time to time when given the opportunities. But today he had gone so over the top with it...

"_He's probably upset that I don't want to do EVERY little thing with him_, _he needs to make some new friends_." Mordecai rationalized. "_I mean_, _sure_, _we're roommates and all_, _but I like to hang out with other people too_." Rigby seemed unmovable on the subject of Eileen, and he hardly ever bothered socializing with the other park workers.

Mordecai looked up at the TV on the wall, watching the weather forecaster's muted lips move.

_"Maybe another camping trip could help build a stronger relationship with Eileen?"_ the bird thought, putting attention back down at the table. _"After all, if he had a girlfriend, he wouldn't need to spend as much time with me. It might even help me get closer to Marga-"_

"Hey, Mordecai." cheerful, yet solemn voice interrupting the blue jay's concentration. Mordecai looked up to the smiling robin in her usual coffee shop attire, notepad at hand.

"Uh, hey Margaret." Mordecai answered, a blush beginning to creep across his face.

"No Rigby today?" She asked, looking slightly confused at the open seat next to Mordecai.

"No, not today," the avian responded, a mixture of sadness and anger present in his voice.

"Why? Did you guys get into a fight or something?" Margaret asked hesitantly, clearly not wanting to be intrusive.

"Uh, no," Mordecai said, trying to console her worry. "He just didn't want to come today." He continued; an awkward smile formed on his beak.

"Oh, sorry; I had always thought that you two were sort of like a package deal." The robin explained, causing Mordecai to choke at the strong irony in her words.

_"Jeez, does it seem like that to everyone?"_ Mordecai thought to himself.

"So, what can I get you?" Margaret asked, fishing for a pen through her apron pocket.

"Oh, uh, I guess I'll just have the usual..."

"Okay! I'll have that out as soon as I can." the robin assured, scribbling on her notepad while making way back to behind the counter.

"Wait!" Mordecai exclaimed almost unwillingly.

Margaret turned back towards the blue jay with a puzzled look. "Uh- do you need something else?"

_"What should I say?" _Mordecai's mind racing for something; anything, to say. Then, the voice of the small raccoon began to echo through his head, "_DUDE_, _SHE DOESN'T LIKE YOU_._She never will_, _when will you accept that?_!" The snide comment stirred up anger in the bird, and perhaps it was because of this seemingly blind fury that Mordecai found the determination to continue.

"I was wondering if you wanted to do something with me- possibly this weekend." the bird answered, immediately becoming embarrassed by his proposition. "Maybe Rigby and Eileen could tag along too, if you want…" Mordecai added. The thought of him and Margaret alone together seemed like too much for him to handle at the time being.

"Oh, uh, sure. What did you have in mind?" She answered cheerfully, leaving Mordecai in a slight state of shock at how positive her response was.

"Maybe we could go camping again? The weather looks nice."

"Sorry, Mordecai, but I'm sure you'll understand me when I say that I don't really want to take my chances again," she giggled. Margaret had acted humorously, yet, it was painfully clear of how dead-serious she was.

Mordecai honestly didn't blame her though, seeing as how Stag-Man had been out on a bloodthirsty hunt for them the last time.

The blue jay frowned. "Oh, okay."

"But, hey! Maybe we could go to that new amusement park!" Margaret offered.

"Huh? New... amusement park?"

"Yeah! My boyfriend works there. It's actually really popular; I'm surprised by you haven't heard of it..."

Mordecai was caught a little off-guard by the 'boyfriend' comment, but wasn't surprised at all.

The bird faked a smile. "Uh, sure. Sounds like fun." Mordecai assured.

"Great! Be sure to bring Rigby, you two don't seem as happy when you're apart." Margaret laughed, giving the male a wink. "Plus, I'm sure Eileen will thank me for it."

It's not like she was giving away her friend's crush by saying that, seeing how painfully obvious it was to everyone that she liked Rigby.

Mordecai could only hope that maybe the raccoon would be welcoming to Eileen if they spent more more time together. He might not be so approving of it at first, but come on, it's an amusement park. There's no way Rigby could pass that up.

"Okay, so it's a plan! I'll go get your coffee," Margaret said, walking off.

Mordecai sighed from relief at how much better than expected things had gone. Margaret may not be single, but it's enough to spend even the slightest bit of time with her.

The only thing that was concerning him was getting Rigby to come along with him. It shouldn't be too hard with a little bit of begging. He'd just have to apologize to him for earlier.

Thinking back to the argument, Mordecai slouched down a bit. The avian sure had said some awful things to his friend.

Mordecai was sure that Rigby would forgive him though, he always did. The blue jay would often get caught up in his own anger, and the raccoon knew that better than anyone.

The troubling factor of Margaret's boyfriend came to mind. She'd said that he worked at said amusement park that they planned on going to, so no doubt Mordecai would end up having to meet him.

_"Wonder what this one looks like," Mordecai chuckled_. He loved Margaret, more than anyone. The bird would do anything for her, no matter what the result may be. However, he couldn't deny that she honestly made some bad choices when it came to dating.

Margaret never seemed to date a guy that was even the slightest bit good for her, but Mordecai forgave her, and loved her anyways. The blue jay loved the robin for what she is, so changing her was unethical. Mordecai would always love Margaret, no matter what she did.

"Here's your coffee, Mordecai!" Margaret said, once again interrupting his train of thought.

Mordecai took the cup from her hand. "Thanks." he said politely.

"So, about tomorrow, I thought we should go around noon?" the robin suggested.

"Oh, sure, whatever works for you."

"Great! I can't wait to see you and Rigby tomorrow!" the robin exclaimed, happily walking off to another customer's table.

"Yeah..." Mordecai said, looking down into his cup of coffee with a bored expression. "Rigby." Mordecai muttered, tracing the rim of his mug with a finger.

_Mordecai took a sip of his coffee, the drink a lot more bitter than he remembered. _He had gotten what he had come for, but looking at the unoccupied stool next to him, realized that he was still missing something.

More accurately; _someone._


	3. Chapter 3

Departing from the warm hospitality of the coffee shop, Mordecai was immediately engulfed by the chilling breeze that blew outside. A gust of the numbing wind shoved against the avian, causing a series of shivers to course through his body.

"_Now I know what Rigby was talking about_..." Mordecai chuckled to himself.

The bird crossed his arms; somewhat hugging himself in an attempt to conserve his body heat.

Sun setting behind the autumn trees in the faraway distance created an array of somber colors and bittersweet euphoria. Mordecai couldn't help but stand in awe at nature's sudden majesty, observing the scene, as well as himself. Life was good and short, and there was no need to spend any of it fighting with his best friend.

It was a moment where you look back and realize your own faults rather than those of others, and guilt consumes you.

_"How should I apologize...?"_ Mordecai thought to himself, rubbing at the back of his neck. They both said some pretty terrible things in the heat of the moment, but the bird would try and be the bigger man and patch things up. He wouldn't be able to stay mad at Rigby anyhow, so it would be stupid to try.

_"Maybe I should get him something,"_ the blue jay jested. _"I guess I could get him that new game he wont shut up about."_ he decided, crossing the street towards the shop with a neon 'GAME' sign in the window.

There were dozens and dozens of shops around town, yet it was as if Mordecai truly only knew about the game store and the coffee shop. He lived in such a big and vast city, but he seemed to lock himself off to those two only places. Perhaps he and Rigby should do some exploring through the city sometime... The fact that an amusement park, of all things, had been constructed at some time and he'd never even heard a word about it should be proof that the park was its own little bubble that ignored the outside world and its rules. Quite literally at times.

Opening the door, he was once again greeted by the cheery sound of a bell, drawing the attention of the store manager to him.

"Oh hey! It's you!" The employee greeted in a bright manner.

Mordecai looked over the male with a puzzled look, observing the brunette's khaki pants and pine-green shirt. "Realm of Darthon" came to mind; a terrible roleplaying game that Rigby and he had purchased from the store a couple months back. It all resulted in a supernatural showdown, _as usual_, as well as Mordecai impaling the male with a wooden ruler.

"Uh, hey." Mordecai replied uncomfortably with a wave. It's hard to think of what to say to a man you nearly killed.

"I haven't seen you since that _incident_ that we had." he continued, creepily.

"Er- yeah. You're alright- right?" Mordecai asked.

"Oh, yeah. I'm sure it's hard to believe, but that wound wasn't even near as fatal as one would think," the manager stated with a laugh. "You should have seen the look on the doctors face!"

"Well, good thing you didn't die and all..."

"Ha, thanks? But hey, where's your friend?"

"Oh, uh, he's not _with_ me, but in a way I'm here _for_ him." Mordecai explained, "There's this new game that he's been talking about lately, I figured I'd get it for him while I out."

"Hm, what game?"

The avian remained silent for a while, trying to think back to all the times Rigby had spouted non-stop crap about the thing. Something about how great the graphics were even though their gaming system was about as 8-bit as it gets. Hell, Pong may as well have better graphics than their Dig-Champs game.

"As many times as he's probably said it, I can't remember..." Mordecai sighed, "Something with an apocalyptic theme I think- with good graphics apparently."

"I think I know what you're talking about. 'Out of Time' ring a bell?" the man asked, Mordecai's face lighting up and coming to a nod.

Looking through the games whilst running his fingers along the cases in search for the title, the man eventually came to a halt, pulling out the game with a sly grin. "Found it." he stated, showing the case to Mordecai for approval.

The blue jay nodded in agreement once more. "Yeah, that 's the one. At least, I hope." the bird answered, flipping the game over and reading the back while the manager walked back behind the counter and to the register.

"Okay, it'll be $49.99." The man said, entering information into the computer.

Mordecai nearly choked at the price. _"Do I even have that much?"_ the bird thought to himself. He could barely afford to buy his own lunch off the salary that Benson paid him. Not that he ever expected to be rolling in dough when applying to work at a public park as a low-class employee, but...

Ironically, at least 70% of his income was probably spent at the coffee shop as a front to see Margaret. Not that he really minded all that much. The coffee shop was a small business, and he saw no reason to choose not to support his friend's jobs in any way he could.

With much doubt, Mordecai eventually came to the positive decision on buying the game, despite it requiring about every spending dollar he had on him. He and Rigby played video games together though, so it a way, he was getting both of them a gift.

"Make sure to keep track of that game; you don't want to end up losing it!" The man chuckled as Mordecai left the store with nothing but a dinging bell behind him.

The blue jay laughed to himself. "_There's no way in hell I'm losing this after paying that much for it_."

It was getting dark now, the sun almost fully set as the stars became visible in the night sky one by one. It was also very quiet, the only sound that could be heard through the silence being the rustling of the plastic bag in Mordecai's hands and well as the patter of the bird's steps on cold concrete.

There were a few people scattered around the town here and there, barely any cars driving through the streets, which seemed odd. Irregular.

Modecai wasn't against it being quiet; it was definitely more pleasant, but its out of the ordinary nature slightly frightened him. Stepping off of the concrete sidewalk and onto the dirt trail through the park's gates, the bird could see light escaping the windows of the house in the distance.

Once again, he began to think about his apology, practicing saying it in his head. What would be the best words to use?

Step by step up the porch's stairs, Mordecai froze in front of the door as if it were all a life-or-death moment. The bird placed his hand on the knob of the front door and stopped. Today had started off as any other day, but then transitioned to severe argument with his friend, and even him working up the nerve to ask out Margaret... somewhat. There had been a little good and bad in this day in short.

"_Hopefully it can just keep getting better_..." Mordecai thought, walking into the house and becoming engulfed in the warm air. The door closed behind him and his eyes began adjusting to the florescent lighting.

"Hey, Rigby!" The blue jay called immediately upon entering the house, "Come here for a second, bro!" Mordecai added, heading towards the kitchen. It'd been a long day, and the bird had been kicking himself about not ordering anything to eat at the coffee shop.

"_Wonder if Pops kept leftovers..."_ Mordecai thought hopefully, scavenging through the fridge.

"Hey Rigb-" Mordecai began once again, stopping himself at the sound of metallic footsteps clicking against the kitchen's wooden floor.

"What are you yelling about?" Benson groaned, walking up next to Mordecai and taking a bottled water from the fridge.

The blue jay gave Benson a puzzled expression. "Why are you here so late? Shouldn't you be at your apartment already?"

"I'm the one who asked the question first," the gumball machine retorted snidely, "And while it's not really any of your business, I got called here."

"What about?" The bird questioned, now slightly interested.

"Skips has been working on something and he needed me to come and help out for a while." Benson sighed, "I kinda wish he'd made the decision to tell me before I drove all the way home though..." the metal man stopped for a moment, taking a swig of his water, "But Rigby ended up calling in about needing something too, so I figured I'd kill two birds with one stone."

"Of all metaphors to use..." Mordecai muttered incoherently, "Speaking of Rigby, where is he? Helping Skips too?"

"Are you joking..?" Benson frowned.

"What do you mean?" Mordecai asked, "Is he still upstairs? He might be mad... we had a bit of a fight earlier."

"Thanks for finally answering my question." Benson mumbled.

"Huh?"

"Mordecai," Benson began, taking a deep breath, "Rigby quit earlier today."

The two figures just stood there, looking at each other for what seemed like an eternity. Not a single sound could be heard throughout the entire house. Not a single sound.


	4. Chapter 4

"You're kidding-... right?" Mordecai laughed at Benson's transparent face. The gumball machine was never really one to joke around, and his humorless expression right now only further proved his seriousness. The bird's stomach sunk, the pit in his now dry and raspy throat growing more and more painful. Mordecai was had nowhere near the appetite he'd had only seconds before. "Rigby... quit?" he repeated.

Benson stood in silence, Mordecai dropping the bag from his hand and hurrying out of the kitchen to run upstairs to his room. _Their_ room. Yet another closed door acted as a barrier between him and the truth, the male swallowing hard as his hand was placed on the knob.

Throwing the door open and with a flip of a switch, everything was revealed. The room didn't bare that great of a difference than how he had left it that morning; still a mess. However, Mordecai could definitely tell that there were some changes. The most noticeable one being Rigby's trampoline, which had acted as a bed for the small mammal over the past few years, was now gone.

The spot of which it had normally rested with a mound of clothes piled atop it was empty; none of his possessions were sprawled across the floor as usual either. The boarded floor of the room was completely barren of the mess it usually contained.

Mordecai stood there in awe. His arms grew heavy, and dropped to his sides. The bird could only remain frozen with his jaw dropped. Turning around in a circle, searching for anything, anything at all that proved the raccoon's existence here, but nothing.

Mordecai's eyes began to sting, the bird quickly brushing away the tears forming in them with his wing. Knees buckled, and Mordecai soon found himself forced to fall on the floor. The male caught himself, weak arms trembling as he look down at the empty floor beneath him.

"_No_… _he_-… _he couldn't have left_..." Mordecai tried to compromise with himself, "_It was only a small fight_, _we have those all the time_." he spat. Maybe this one was just the final straw that broke the camel's back. How much he wish he could go back on things.

"Okay Rigby, you got me." Mordecai chuckled sadly, looking up and around for his friend to come out from where ever he was hiding. Nothing. The bird remained in that position for a seemingly endless amount of time, consumed by the silence that ran through the house.

Mordecai gave a melancholic smile, letting a tear run down his face and shatter onto the floor. He was only fooling himself. The bird got up and into the hallway, closing the door to its original place; closed, as if Mordecai had never gone in there. As if none of this had happened.

The blue jay stumbled down the stairs, throwing himself onto the couch and doing his best to breath deeply.

"Do you want to explain what happened?" Benson asked, appearing in the doorway.

"Why didn't you tell me he was quitting?! I could've said something; I could've stopped hi-"

"Don't go blaming me all of a sudden," the gumball machine stepped in, casting and angry glare at the avian.

"I'm not!" Mordecai corrected, "-But still!"

"I thought you knew already," Benson explained. "I didn't really think that a topic as important as him quitting wouldn't have already been discussed between the two of you."

"Why would you let him quit?"

"What, am I just supposed to deny him his opportunity and free will to quit? Do you even hear yourself right now?" Benson laughed, "I realize this is probably a lot to take in, but if anything, this is _your own _fault! Don't go attacking me!" He screamed.

Mordecai tried to respond, but nothing came to mind. It was his fault wasn't it? There wasn't any use in denying it, Benson was completely right. For once, surprisingly.

"Sorry," The blue jay muttered quietly, "You're right. I'm just unstable right now."

Benson sighed. "It's fine."

"How long ago did he quit?"

"I'd say about..." Benson started, looking around the room for something, "What the…?"

"What?"

"Very cute, what did you guys do with the clock?" Benson asked irritably. "I swear if this had all been some kind of joke..." the gumball machine started, face growing red.

"I don't know!" Mordecai defended, "Honestly, I don't know! I've been out of the house practically all day." The blue jay explained, causing the machine to let out a groan.

"Well then, I'd have to say it was about maybe an hour, hour-and-a-half ago?"

"Did he say anything about where he planned on going?" Mordecai questioned hopefully.

"No, I would've already told you that if he had. I'm not an idiot." Benson frowned. "Anyways, that's too much time! There's no use in trying to chase him down like an idiot in the middle of the night."

The blue jay was beginning to grow irritable himself. "Do you know anything _else_?"

Come on. The bird had just lost his best friend in the entire world and was now completely alone, and it seemed like Benson couldn't honestly care less about what Mordecai was going through.

"I'm sorry Mordecai. I was at home, and got a call from Rigby. He stated that he needed to talk with me." the gumball machine continued. "Like I said earlier, Skips had also talked to me about needing some help with a project, so I utilized the opportunity to come resolve both of the problems."

"And?"

"LET ME FINISH." Benson screamed, Mordecai shutting up immediately. "I got here and Rigby came to me with all of his crap packed in a suitcase, merely said, 'I'm quitting,' and left without a single word. Once that was taken care of, I went to Skip's garage to help him, came back for a drink at the house, and found you." Benson finished with a deep breath.

"What does Skips need help with?" The bird questioned.

"Go ask him yourself. It's none of your business, just as it's none of mine to tell you," Benson replied harshly. "Plus doesn't it seem a little inappropriate to jump from this topic of Rigby quitting to being nosy about other people's business?" Mordecai only rolled his eyes, Benson's glare persisting once again at him. "Whatever, I'm going back home."

"Bye." Mordecai muttered.

"Don't stay up late." the gumball machine stated, "I realize it might be hard to sleep with all this on your mind, but know that you're still expected to work tomorrow regardless."

"What?! You're not even going to give me time to go out and look for him?"

"Pff." Benson scoffed, "I don't have time for this little game of hide-and-seek you two are playing with each other. Fights happen and relationships end, but that doesn't change the fact that you're still required to work if you want to keep your job." the gumball machine spat. "You can go out and look for him after you finish all your work _CORRECTLY_."

And with that, Benson left with the door closed loudly behind him. What was there to even do now? Nothing but sleep it seemed, no matter how much Mordecai didn't want to give into it.

Mordecai decided to stay downstairs on the couch, turning the television on and tuning its volume down to nearly mute, watching the flashing pictures with the machine's quiet white-noise whispering in his ear.

"Shit." He muttered to himself, rubbing his tired eyes. All he could do at this point was wish. Wish for Rigby to walk back through that door right now and settle things with the bird here and now as opposed to running away. But he knew that wouldn't happen. Not under these circumstances.

It had to happen eventually though, right? After all, where would Rigby even go? There was no way he could manage to get a job elsewhere, at least, not a good one. Lack of a high school diploma tends to have a lot of downfalls, as you'd expect.

If anything, he probably went to live with his brother, Don. Rigby wouldn't be able to make it on his own, which means he'd be forced to turn around and come back, or give into living with his sibling. But Rigby was often very stubborn on the matter of Don, rarely accepting help from his younger sibling, even when he may need it most.

Mordecai had gained Margaret today, but had lost Rigby in the process. And was one day-date with Margaret and her boyfriend even worth it all?

Ah, that's right. How was he even going to explain to the robin that Rigby was no longer with him? There would be no way she'd want to go without the raccoon while the two friends were fighting. Yet, this seemed like one of the only occasional chances he'd get to spend with her. Ugh, what to do...

"I already miss you." Mordecai mumbled to himself with a weak smile. He would do whatever he could from now on to get his friend back, no matter how overly dramatic quitting seemed. That was just the kind of person Rigby was. A cry baby, whiny, melodramatic, but still a good friend.


End file.
